Deacons Fall in Season Opener to Hofstra

Friday, August 30

Winston-Salem, N.C.

6 P.M.

Wake Forest University

0-1,0-0ACC

Hofstra

1-0,0-0CAA

Hofstra

Wake Forest

Photo by: Helen McGinnis / Wake Forest Athletics

8/30/2024 8:56:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score

Five different players made their official debuts for Wake Forest on Friday evening.

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Kicking off its 2024 fall season at home for the start of its hosted invitational, Wake Forest volleyball (0-1) faced Hofstra (1-0) on Friday night inside Varsity Arena. Ultimately, The Pride was able to walk away with a three-set victory ((21-25, 23-25, 23-25).

Playing in her first match since the 2022 season, redshirt sophomore Olivia Murphy was a standout during the contest, finishing with a team-best 10 kills. Dior Charles and Sahara Maruska added eight and seven of their own, respectively.

Standout junior libero Emma Farrell led the defensive pace with 17 digs, tied for a match high. Tina Grkovic ended with three blocks for the evening.

Freshman setter Becca Bellows dished out 17 assists while Rian Baker contributed 13.

Two more days of competition are on deck for Wake Forest, as the Demon Deacons' event continues into Saturday (Aug. 31), with a 6 p.m. ET match versus West Virginia University.

How it Happened

The first point of the fall 2024 season happened for Wake Forest on a kill by Olivia Murphy.
- Her classmate Paige Crawford next followed with a nice hit.
- Freshman Dhru Lalaji checked in for her first collegiate appearance.
After The Pride took a 6-2 lead to start the first set, the Deacs called for a timeout.
A pair of blocks helped Wake Forest get back into it early, trailing by one (6-5).
Errors on serves and attacks were traded, with Hofstra staying in front, 13-8.
Coming out of a timeout, Murphy nailed her second kill of the evening.
Crawford flew from the left side to connect on a powerful swing, creating a two-point game (14-12).
Murphy stayed active for the Deacons, making aggressive plays from the right side as the deficit shrunk to 14-13.
- Two ensuing kills put The Pride back up by three.
  - Sahara Maruska answered with a high leap.
A five-point advantage went the way of the visitors before ultimately suffering an attack error (22-18 in set one).
Emma Farrell was able to line a service ace late, but Hofstra hung on to capture the opening frame, 25-21.
- Crawford and Murphy had three kills apiece in the first.
Wake Forest newcomer Jaime Santer stepped into set two for the Deacs.
Olivia Franke additionally entered the contest, quickly putting down a kill at the middle of the floor.
- Hofstra led 6-2 in the opening stages of the second.
  - As The Pride went up 9-4, the Deacs regrouped in a floor break.
Charles went hard from the right before Rian Baker made a dump kill and ace to cut things down (10-8).
Six of the next eight possessions went the way of Hofstra.
Santer clocked a kill before The Pride tacked on a 5-2 run – still ahead, 19-13, in set two.
- Freshman Becca Bellows made her debut on the next possession, setting up Maruska for a slam.
Some seesaw action took place, with Santer and Franke chipping in to add points for Wake Forest as the score sat at 22-20, in favor of the visitors.
An ace put Hofstra at set point, as Franke then delivered from the right.
One more punch gave The Pride a set-two victory, 25-23.
- Three different Deacs had five kills at the time.
Things were even early in the third period, 5-5.
- Much of the same continued for eight more total rallies (9-9).
A few successful serves gave Hofstra a slight edge, 13-11.
- Murphy's seventh kill of the night happened immediately afterward.
By the time the official timeout was reached, Hofstra was holding on to a 15-13 gain.
- It wouldn't take long for Maruska to create a 15-15 tie.
Elena Dragani made her fourth career appearance midway through the third set.
After Hofstra took a narrow 20-19 bump, Murphy exploded for back-to-back kills to keep things even (21-21).
- The redshirt sophomore would not be denied, again providing the answer and giving her squad a 23-21 lead.
Hofstra scored twice, and a timeout was taken, still tied in the third.
Earning its way to match point, The Pride was able to win the match in three sets on a final kill.
Wake Forest fell, 0-3.

Additional Notes

Friday evening was only the second all-time meeting between the two programs, with the last one happening on Sept. 19, 2015 and resulting in a five-set victory for the Deacs.
Graduate transfers Sahara Maruska and Tina Grkovic competed within the starting lineup in their official Wake Forest debuts during the season-opening contest.
- Additionally, fellow grad transfer Jaime Santer, along with freshmen Dhru Lalaji and Becca Bellows, appeared in the Old Gold and Black for the first time.
Redshirt sophomore Olivia Murphy made her fourth career start and first appearance since Dec. 3, 2022, having missed the entire 2023 campaign with an injury.
Olivia Franke reached her 600th career kill during the evening, happening in the second set.
- Friday included her 101st appearance through her tenure with the program.

From Coach Smart
"Credit to Hofstra for their competitive play. This early in the season, there are obviously different things that all teams are trying to figure out quickly. We will need to reset immediately to prepare for another test tomorrow evening, working to protect our home floor."

Up Next
Wake Forest's hosted invitational moves into day two on Saturday (Aug. 31), as the Deacons will face West Virginia at 6 p.m. ET. Fans can watch the action inside Varsity Arena on ACC Network Extra.

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